Which would mean that you risk missing out on the Mazda 3: a family car that’s fun to drive and well built, with a stylish interior that’s well laid out and easy to use.

It is about to be replaced by an all-new Mazda 3, which goes on sale in Spring, but there's still a lot going for this previous-generation model on the used market.

Despite its age, the design is still more interesting than the sober VW Golf and familiar Ford Focus, partly thanks to high levels of standard equipment, which include alloy wheels, along with body-coloured mirrors and door handles on every model in the range.

And it feels as sporty to drive as it looks, thanks to sharp and precise steering: the Mazda 3 appears to dart towards a different direction as soon as you turn the wheel, making the driver feel more in control and better able to negotiate narrow bends accurately.

Some minor updates were made to the car at the end of 2016, which made small improvements to the Mazda's agility and comfort, but they aren't very noticeable.

The car is stable, with very little lean around fast corners. And the ride is comfortable, soaking up most potholes and bumps without jarring passengers. But if comfort is your top priority, then the VW Golf and Audi A3 are even better in this respect, if not quite as sharp in corners.

There’s no engine to avoid, but the diesels are most definitely the pick of the bunch. Both the 1.5-litre and 2.0-litre petrol offerings lack a performance punch but they do pick up points for being smooth and quiet.

Starting at £17,000, the Mazda 3 is an expensive car, but comes well-equipped with a 7in screen on the dashboard, digital radio and air conditioning as standard.

Cars built since the 2016 update have an improved interior. The differences are small, but the higher-quality switches, dashboard plastics and glossy black panels do make the newer 3 feel more expensive. The interior feels solid, even if it doesn’t have the same quality feel of an Audi A3. Neither is its dashboard software as slick as the Audi.

There is enough space in the back for at least two tall adults but the boot is smaller than the average family car. It should be enough for most families, unless they have a large buggy or need space for bulky luggage, in which case a Peugeot 308 or Skoda Octavia have over 100 litres more than the Mazda’s 350-litre boot.

The car received a full five stars for safety after being crash tested by the independent Euro NCAP organisation.

Top of the range Sport Nav models come equipped with the sort of niceties you expect to see in premium German saloons: a Bose sound system, reversing camera and a head-up display.

Mazda 3 Skyactiv-D Diesel 150PS SE-L Nav Diesel

The power of this diesel engine makes overtaking manoeuvres a breeze and it sprints from 0-62mph in 8.1 seconds.

Mazda 3 Skyactiv-G Petrol 165PS

The 0-62mph dash is only 0.1 seconds faster than the more frugal diesel engine, which doesn't justify the heady 135g/km CO2 figure.

Mazda 3 History

2013 The current Mazda 3 is launched.

Understanding Mazda 3 car names

3

Trim

SE

Engine

1.5 Skyactiv-G Petrol 100PS

Gearbox

6-Speed manual

Trim

There are five trims in total (SE, SE Nav, SE-L, SE-L Nav and Sport Nav). Each higher level means more equipment and a larger price, while Nav denotes satellite navigation system fitted as standard.

Engine

All engines are badged Skyactiv: Mazda’s name for a range of technology that boost efficiency. Diesels have the letter D and petrol cars have G. The size of the engine is given in litres (here it’s 1.5) and the power is given in PS - another name for horsepower.

Gearbox

6-speed shows that the car has six gears. The Mazda 3 is offered with both a six-speed manual and a six-speed automatic gearbox, which comes at a slight price premium and can only be mated to select engines.

Mazda 3 Engines

The most basic Mazda 3 models come with the lowest-powered 1.5 Skyactiv-G petrol engine, which offers the among lowest CO2 emissions figures in the range (119g/km) but performance is fairly lacklustre. The 0-62mph dash takes 10.6 seconds and the top speed is over 15mph slower the powerful diesels at 113mph.

The 165 horsepower does feel quick but its higher CO2 emissions mean that you’ll pay £130 a year in road tax. Fuel economy of 48.7mpg is well below other versions: in real-world driving you;d be lucky to see 40mpg.

Customers not too fussed about performance can save money at the pumps with the 105 horsepower 1.5-litre Skyactiv-D engine, with 75mpg - according to official tests. It’s not very powerful, though. A better choice, for £700 more, is the 2.2-litre diesel, which has strong performance and good fuel economy.

Fuel

Mpg

Bhp

0 - 62mph

Top speed

1.5 Skyactiv-G

Petrol

55.4mpg

99bhp

10.6s

113mph

2.0 Skyactiv-G

Petrol

55.4mpg

118bhp

8.9s

121mph

2.0 Skyactiv-G

Petrol

48.7mpg

163bhp

8.2s

130mph

1.5 Skyactiv-D

Diesel

74.3mpg

104bhp

11.0s

115mph

2.2 Skyactiv-D

Diesel

68.9mpg

148bhp

8.1s

130mph

Mazda 3 Trims

SE, SE Nav, SE-L, SE-L Nav and Sport Nav

Mazda doesn't do sat-nav as standard, so customers wishing to throw away the road atlas will have to pay a bit extra and look towards the models with a 'Nav' suffix to the nameplate.

Finally, Sport Nav models have 18in alloy wheels, a digital speedometer, a reversing camera, a premium Bose sound system, a neat head-up display that projects speed and navigation data right in front of the driver’s eyes, as well as keyless entry.

Mazda 3 Reliability and warranty

Mazda regularly ranks highly on the Auto Express Driver Power customer satisfaction survey and the Mazda 3 placed in the top half of the table in 2015.

The Japanese engines are notoriously robust and build quality ranked alongside the likes of BMW's X3 and the Mercedes C-Class.. The warranty is a pretty standard 3-years / 60,000 miles (or whichever comes first).

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